Les Arcs 1600’s Hotel Cachette Reborn

Hotel Cachette, the renaissance of a legendary address in Arc 1600 Built by the architects Alain Taves and Robert Rebutato under the instructions of Charlotte Perriand at the start of the 1970s, the HotelCachette is a legendary address in Les Arcs.

The hotel has since had several operators and undergone a few renovations, but the original design of Charlotte Perriand’s team and thehotel’s structural elements have never been altered. Now, Friendly Hotel has just acquired this icon of Les Arcs’ architectural heritage and entrusted its renovation to the well-known firm Patriarche. Modernising the building,equipping it with the criteria of modern comfort and restoring its presence whilst preserving the heritage of Charlotte Perriand the great lady of design, was no easy task, but the challenge has been met.

The hotel is now ranked 4* with its 260 beds divided into:
• 12 standard double rooms: the cabins
• 36 superior double rooms, some of which can be connected to make family suites
• 28 Junior Suites (family rooms for 2 to 4 people) with a lounge area that has a sofa that can be converted into twin beds, with high quality bedding. 21 of the suites have beautiful balconies with mountain views
• 11 spacious family suites (sleeping 4 to 6 people), 2 of which have a huge terrace with a stunning view
• 1 XXL suite (Cachette suite) with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a massive terrace! It will befurnished with vintage furniture.

All the rooms have an exceptional view of either the mountain or the panorama of the Tarentaiseand Beaufortain ranges. The hotel will also be open in summer.

A gourmet and inventive restaurant

The restaurant will offer dishes that will put vegetables in the spotlight and include show cooking. The best Savoyard specialities will ofcourse be on the menu but in a light version with an innovative twist. The food will be healthy and balanced, but gourmet and adapted to individual requirements, according to the season and guests’ level of sporting activity. A special mention for the breakfast buffet which, in addition to the classics, will include a Healthy Boost corner and freshly made omelettes. The restaurant is also open to clients not staying in the hotel.

Throughout the day, the bar will be open for quality snack food that is both healthy and locally sourced. There will also be takeaway options in eco-responsible packaging.

Decor and green attitude

Of course, the original spirit imagined by Charlotte Perriand guided the ideas of the designers from Patriarche. The decorators’ challenge was to prioritise the views, integrate the natural surroundings and propose a design that combines authenticity, simplicity and functionality.

There are a number of “Cachette items”, a humorous reference to the hotel’s original name; a very graphic light created with a string of Charlotte Perriand’s renowned small wall lamps that were originally designed for the apartments in Les Arcs and, on the floor, a genuine IGN map of the area, a real find!¶

Particular attention was paid to the choice of furniture, combining new furniture with reissues of pieces from the 1970s, found at the vintage specialist Selency.

The bar and coworking space are particularly well done. They are in a gallery with windows all round offering views that cross from the ski slopes on one side to Roignais massif on the other. The gallery was already there but its volume has been doubled to create a spectacular space.

During the day, the area opens out onto a vast terrace that also serves the restaurant. In the evening, the central fireplace offers a warmer atmosphere. Without a doubt, having an aperitif here while watching the illuminated ballet of the snow groomers outside will become a must in Les Arcs.

Friendly Hotel were very keen to integrate an ecoresponsible vision into the project. The renovation evidently included this notion in the technical aspects (thermal renovation of the building, «save the planet» switches in the rooms, waste from the construction work managed by the Savoyard company Trialp, raw wood furniture, all of the companies involved chosen locally, most of them in Savoie, etc.). The hotel’s internal management also demonstrates this commitment: anti-waste and eco-gesture training for all employees, local suppliers preferred for all hotel orders, plastic bottles eliminated in favour of Castaelie carafes in the rooms and still or sparkling filtered water from Les Arcs in the bar and restaurant, seasonal products and short circuits given priority in the restaurant, eco-responsible packaging for takeaway products.